Regatta Gains Prestige

Hampton Cup Now Top Event

May 28, 1993|By WARNER HESSLER Daily Press

HAMPTON — The Hampton Cup Regatta, which as recently as 1990 was considered a minor-league event with just $15,000 in prize money, will be the most important stop on the American Power Boat Association tour this summer.

Jim Goodbody, regatta chairman for the 67-year old event, said Thursday that the Hampton Cup has been awarded the 1993 World Inboard Championships. The winners in each of the nine classes will earn the right to paint No. 1 on their hulls for the 1994 season.

The three-day regatta will be staged Aug. 13-15 on Mill Creek.

Goodbody said the sponsoring Phoebus Civic Association has raised enough money to hold the $110,000 regatta, which will be award $45,000 in prize money.

``To host the World Championships means we've made it,'' Goodbody said. ``The dream of hosting the World started long ago. We knew the potential of Mill Creek as a championship course, but it took time to convince people of what we had here. Increasing the prize money helped, too.''

In 1990, the Hampton Cup ran 11 classes and paid $15,000 to the top finishers.

Despite being the oldest regatta in the United States and having what is generally regarded by drivers and APBA officials as the fastest course in North America, though, the Hampton Cup did not become a prestigious event until 1991.

That year, the civic association went to year-round fund-raising and collected enough money to offer $35,000 in prizes. Hampton was awarded the North American Championships that year.

In 1992, the purse was increased to $45,000, and Mill Creek was the site of the prestigious Summer Nationals. Goodbody estimated that approximately 80,000 fans lined the shores for the three days of racing.

``The World Championships is a whole new game,'' Goodbody said. ``Last year we had 98 racing teams, and this year we expect about 140 of the top teams in North America.''

As was the case in 1992, the Hampton Cup will be one of five summer races shown nationally on SportsChannel America. Goodbody said negotiations are under way to air a one-hour, tape-delayed highlight package on WAVY-TV.

Nine of the 11 classes that raced in 1992 will return. The 1 liter modified and Pro Stock classes have been dropped because of an insufficient number of boats in the class.